We don't just have to call the baby Peanut anymore. We picked out the name Alexander James. Alexander is from Alexander Hamilton, one of John's favorite founding fathers. (John thought of naming kids after founding fathers and famous scientists. My Dad is glad that we are not going with Galileo or Copernicus.) James for my Grandpa, who passed away in January.
I was surprised that we picked a name so fast. For some reason, we found a boy's name easier to choose than a girl's name. We have been calling him Alex, but I also like AJ. I have been in baby mode all week, and I picked out some decor that I like for the nursery. I am still looking for a crib that I am happy with though... John survived his first trip to Babies R Us, but there is more baby shopping in his future.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Saturday, October 11, 2008
My Mom's Helper
I posted about working on campus events for around ten years, but I realized that college is not the beginning of the story. The story begins with my mom, who was not only a stay-at-home-mom but also a volunteer-mom. I remember her volunteering with the Girl Scouts and Aullwood Audubon Center. By the time I was around ten, I could be my mom's helper. She worked on the Pancake Breakfast fundraiser at Aullwood Farm for multiple years. I remember running errands with her before the event and going to help the day of the event.
By high school, we were working with the church youth group and my mom put together multiple Spaghetti and Baked Potato dinners to help us raise money for camp. By that time, the youth could take on more responsibility, but I remember my mom being an integral element.
When I look back, it is no surprise that I enjoy working on events.
By high school, we were working with the church youth group and my mom put together multiple Spaghetti and Baked Potato dinners to help us raise money for camp. By that time, the youth could take on more responsibility, but I remember my mom being an integral element.
When I look back, it is no surprise that I enjoy working on events.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Chicago
I spent last Tuesday to Saturday in Chicago for the National Academic Advising Association's (NACADA) national conference. It was a good conference, and I have ideas to bring back to UTSA. I co-presented a poster on Sophomore Day.
I am posting some pictures from the trip. The fountains are from Millennium Park, and I liked the shot of people walking around by the Chicago theatre. The other night pictures are from Navy Pier on Friday night where we saw fireworks. We also made it to the Art Institute of Chicago on Thursday night for a few hours.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Campus Events
Looking back, I realize that I have been involved in campus events for around ten years now. That's almost a third of my life!
It started back in the fall of 1998 with the Residence Hall Association at Case Western Reserve University. I became an officer in the organization at the end of my freshman year, and my first big event to help with was Casino Night the following fall. I also helped with outdoor movies, Halloween parties for local kids, and SpringFest, which was one of my favorites.
I did take a year off between undergrad and grad school, but I was back working on events in no time when I was hired as a graduate assistant in Student Activities at the University of Dayton. You can lose track of all the events working in Student Activities, but I really enjoyed so many of them.
After working for two years in Student Activities at the University of Texas at San Antonio, I was ready for a change. The Campus Activities Board put on almost 50 events a year while I was their advisor, and I was tired. I really enjoyed working with the students, but I was ready to switch gears into academic advising.
Within two month of working at the Colleges' Freshman Advising Center, I was back to helping with an event. They needed help with the Sophomore Transition Fair, which has now grown into Sophomore Day.
When the first UTSA Advising Conference was being planned, I volunteered for that committee. I had no idea that I'd be co-chairing the second annual conference. After nine months of hard work, we had a successful conference yesterday with approximately 225 attendees for all over Texas (and a few from out-of-state). We actually had to turn away attendees because we had maxed-out our reserved spaces. The conference attendance grew by 17% in one year and could have grown more. I have been so fortunate to work with an outstanding co-chair and committee. It really is the people that make an event.
I think that yesterday was more than just the culmination of nine months of work but really ten years of experiences. I may not want to plan events for my entire job, but I realize that I still want to be involved in a few.
It started back in the fall of 1998 with the Residence Hall Association at Case Western Reserve University. I became an officer in the organization at the end of my freshman year, and my first big event to help with was Casino Night the following fall. I also helped with outdoor movies, Halloween parties for local kids, and SpringFest, which was one of my favorites.
I did take a year off between undergrad and grad school, but I was back working on events in no time when I was hired as a graduate assistant in Student Activities at the University of Dayton. You can lose track of all the events working in Student Activities, but I really enjoyed so many of them.
After working for two years in Student Activities at the University of Texas at San Antonio, I was ready for a change. The Campus Activities Board put on almost 50 events a year while I was their advisor, and I was tired. I really enjoyed working with the students, but I was ready to switch gears into academic advising.
Within two month of working at the Colleges' Freshman Advising Center, I was back to helping with an event. They needed help with the Sophomore Transition Fair, which has now grown into Sophomore Day.
When the first UTSA Advising Conference was being planned, I volunteered for that committee. I had no idea that I'd be co-chairing the second annual conference. After nine months of hard work, we had a successful conference yesterday with approximately 225 attendees for all over Texas (and a few from out-of-state). We actually had to turn away attendees because we had maxed-out our reserved spaces. The conference attendance grew by 17% in one year and could have grown more. I have been so fortunate to work with an outstanding co-chair and committee. It really is the people that make an event.
I think that yesterday was more than just the culmination of nine months of work but really ten years of experiences. I may not want to plan events for my entire job, but I realize that I still want to be involved in a few.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
What have I been up to?
Obviously not blogging, or sleeping normally...
Of course there are reasons for this. I should begin with the big reason: pregnancy. John and I are expecting our "Peanut" due March 8, 2009. That makes me 15 weeks along (16 weeks as of Sunday). John tends to give nicknames, so it did not take much time for the baby to have a nickname.
The pregnancy is going well, but it has zapped my energy. I watched a lot of TV this summer. It is a bad sign when you start to see reruns on HGTV... The Olympics and politics have thrown in some variety.
I have discovered that the term morning sickness is misleading. It can strike at anytime. I finally gave in and asked my doctor for some medicine, which is helping. I have also discovered that elastic waist pants are wonderful, especially ones that are nice enough to wear to work.
I will try to post sonogram pictures, but literally all you can see is a little peanut. My next one is scheduled at 19 weeks, and I am really excited to see how much the baby has developed. Hearing the baby's heartbeat is such a joy. I leave my doctor's office happy because of those few moments.
John has already cleaned his stuff out of the spare bedroom for the baby, but I am behind on that task. The guest room now doubles as John's study space for Calculus.
Work has kept me busy too. In addition to the summer and fall rush of new freshmen to advise, I have been co-chairing our one-day academic advising conference. A lot of work can go into a one day event. It is coming up on the Friday the 26th, and then I am off to a conference in Chicago on the 30th. At some point between now and the 30th, I will be finishing up a poster presentation for the conference about our Sophomore Day event. Somehow, I still do some programming at work even though I no longer work in Student Activities.
So, life is good. Busy, but good.
Update: Yes, the best sonogram pictures were already in a scrapbook. I scanned them and hope that you can view them OK.
Of course there are reasons for this. I should begin with the big reason: pregnancy. John and I are expecting our "Peanut" due March 8, 2009. That makes me 15 weeks along (16 weeks as of Sunday). John tends to give nicknames, so it did not take much time for the baby to have a nickname.
The pregnancy is going well, but it has zapped my energy. I watched a lot of TV this summer. It is a bad sign when you start to see reruns on HGTV... The Olympics and politics have thrown in some variety.
I have discovered that the term morning sickness is misleading. It can strike at anytime. I finally gave in and asked my doctor for some medicine, which is helping. I have also discovered that elastic waist pants are wonderful, especially ones that are nice enough to wear to work.
I will try to post sonogram pictures, but literally all you can see is a little peanut. My next one is scheduled at 19 weeks, and I am really excited to see how much the baby has developed. Hearing the baby's heartbeat is such a joy. I leave my doctor's office happy because of those few moments.
John has already cleaned his stuff out of the spare bedroom for the baby, but I am behind on that task. The guest room now doubles as John's study space for Calculus.
Work has kept me busy too. In addition to the summer and fall rush of new freshmen to advise, I have been co-chairing our one-day academic advising conference. A lot of work can go into a one day event. It is coming up on the Friday the 26th, and then I am off to a conference in Chicago on the 30th. At some point between now and the 30th, I will be finishing up a poster presentation for the conference about our Sophomore Day event. Somehow, I still do some programming at work even though I no longer work in Student Activities.
So, life is good. Busy, but good.
Update: Yes, the best sonogram pictures were already in a scrapbook. I scanned them and hope that you can view them OK.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Giant Puffy Taco
We really enjoyed going to Dayton Dragons minor league baseball games, so I do not know why it took us four years to go to a San Antonio Missions game. We went last night with Kat, Marty, Sharis, Sam and Mark. The Missions came from behind to beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 9-7.
Of course, I had to compare my minor league baseball game experiences in Ohio and Texas. Let's begin with the mascots. I was very amused by the giant, dancing Puffy Taco! Where else can you find this?! Henry the Puffy Taco is joined by Ballapeno, a giant jalepeno complete with multiple costumes. The third mascot, X-tra the dog, also put on a good show.
For the seventh inning stretch we sang Take me out to the Ball Game followed by Deep in the Heart of Texas. Now I just need to learn the lyrics all the lyrics to be more of a Texan. Sorry, Dayton, there just are not many good Ohio songs.
(Picture above from the internet)
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Where is the summer going?
The summer is flying by! We had our last freshmen orientation program on Friday. Yay! Summer is our busiest time at work, and I am also working on our one-day advising conference for September. I am looking forward to things calming down in October. I am going to the National Academic Advising Association Conference in Chicago in early October, which will be fun and a good learning experience. I have not been to Chicago since 2003, so it will be nice to visit again.
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